Shadow Uproar
by YAJJ
Summary: With Cipher on the rise, it seems that no one can stop them. But when a bold hero shows up, can he stop them, with the help of his pokemon and brand-new friend? What will it take? Can he purify the Shadow Pokemon in time? Ex-thief turned hero? Let's do it
1. Prologue

_**Shadow Uproar**_

Prologue

Written by: YAJJ

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon.

I've been thinking about this for a while, and there will be a sequel, BTW, Michael's story, starting just a year after the first Incident. The second one will span more time. _Much_ more time... hehe.

* * *

The wind whistled loudly. The sun beat down on the barren, desert landscape. A Skarmory flew overhead. Only the toughest of the tough could live out here, miles from any other civilization. Rocks dotted the landscape, where, in a canyon, behind which hid a hover bike and an Espeon.

The Espeon's dual pronged tail waved in the hot, still air. She leaned down to lick her haunches, and crossed her paws on the rust-colored steel exterior of the sidecar. She panted, and swiped her tongue along her jaws. Her light pink ears drooped down. She glanced behind her. "Espe, Espeon. Es espe pe Espeon espe!" she exclaimed.

She looked into the canyon and smirked as she heard the reassuring exclaimed of "Moonlight! Secret Power!" And then an explosion. She curled up on the floor of the sidecar. She knew it'd be okay.

-Eclo Canyon-

"Moonlight! Secret Power!"

"Umbre_on_!" Moonlight the Umbreon leapt forward and whipped his black-furred head around, shooting white arrows at the building he was facing. The wall exploded, and he looked up at his trainer, a twenty-two-year-old man with dirty blond hair, and platinum sunglasses over golden eyes. Beneath his glasses was a white strip of sunscreen. His clothes consisted of black boots, black pants, and a long, blue overcoat with long sleeves. Upon his face was a smirk. _"Wes? Is that what you wanted?" _he asked.

His trainer, Wes, looked down at him. "Exactly." He assured.

Moonlight smiled and waved his black tail with a yellow stripe. He brushed his right paw along the sandy ground. _"Let's go. I don't want Daylight burning."_

Wes agreed with his trusted partner. He walked into the smoky building. "Wait here." He said.

Moonlight nodded and sat on the dusty ground. He licked his paw and brushed it along his ear, trying to cool himself down.

Wes smiled as the dust blew itself away in some parts. He could see the red and purple machine he had helped to create. "The Snag Machine…" he muttered.

Moonlight pricked his ears at the words. He sighed and shook his head. _"Shoulda known."_ He whispered.

Wes looked back at him. "I thought you knew me better than that." He joked. He turned back to the Snag Machine. He reached out and brushed its fine metal details. He winced as a loud siren wailed.

"_Grab it and let's go!"_ Moonlight exclaimed, already on his paws and itching to run.

"Yeah…come on!" Wes agreed, snatching the Snag Machine off of its base and slipping it over his sleeve.

Moonlight spun on his black heels. Wes ran forward, his boots pelting the ground, edging Moonlight on slightly faster. They ran side by side, as partner and pokemon, trusting each other enough ot know that they wouldn't be allowed to be hurt.

"Hey! Get back here!" exclaimed a bodybuilder in a rust red muscle shirt.

Wes rolled his golden eyes, lifted his platinum glasses so they rested on his mess of hair, and took out a circular object. He pressed the silver button in the middle, and threw it back at the gathered group. It attached itself to the building, and then blew up. The entire group jumped into the air in shock.

The bodybuilder gritted his teeth. "_WE'LL GET YOU- AND THE SNAG MACHINE!_" he roared.

Wes shook his head. "Maybe if you can catch me!" He rounded the rock.

"Espe! Espeon!" Daylight the Espeon exclaimed as she sat up.

Wes leapt into his seat, and Moonlight into the sidecar. Immediately, Wes started the engine, and they tore off. They passed over the never-ending desert to a small, train-like gas station. He pulled up to it, and shut off his motor. Moonlight jumped out and wandered back to the compartment that held their food, water, and everything that they needed, Daylight right behind him. They pawed at the door that refused to open for them, and then sat down.

Wes laughed at them. "All right I'm coming. I'm right here." He assured them. They panted, and pawed at his leg happily. He unlocked the door, and pulled out two bowls- their bowls- and set them on the ground. He took out the big jug of water, and poured it for them. "There you go, buddies. Drink up. I'm gonna go inside; so try not to mess anything up while I'm gone." He walked over to the train-like gas station, and passed a large hover truck.

Moonlight's fur rose with anxiety, and prickled with fear. He lifted his head, as hot as he was, and growled a little at the truck. He didn't _trust_ it. He refused to. Not at the uneasy feeling it gave off, and the wiggling of a large brown bag in the back.

Just as Wes lighted upon the revelation that his best friend didn't at all trust the thing that he had just came up on, two men, one wearing a navy blue cap and the other with spiky blond hair, came out of the structure, the one with blond hair rubbing his stomach happily.

"Man, did we ever pig out, or what? I haven't eaten like that since never!" he exclaimed.

Wes took a quick step away from the men, now choosing to listen to his over-protective black dog pokemon.

"Man, don't I know it! I feel like I'm going to explode; I'm so stuffed!" Blue-Hat said to Blond-Hair.

"Now we just gotta get _this_ thing to the boss, and we'll be all done with _our_ job." Blond-Hair said, jumping into the driver's side of the truck.

Moonlight growled a little louder, and felt Daylight lay a calming dual-pronged tail on his shoulder. He brushed it away. Wes's safety was much more important than his own; he would give his life to protect the man that had saved his and Daylight's lives when they were hatchlings. He leapt forward, his fur now standing so high that it could have been floating off of his skin, and growled ferociously, taking a daring step in front of Wes, daring the men to even _touch_ their mighty trainer, to dare foul the man with their very aura; with their evil presence.

He didn't understand why; people approached Wes all of the time, but their cockiness, how the bag in back was moving as it was, indicating that these men who were about the same age as Wes were not holding any items in there, but a living creature. Oh ho, the thing may have been an item to the cruel men that were its' captors, but that wasn't the way that the trio worked.

No living, breathing thing was ever simply an _item_. No, if it could suck in oxygen and feel its life giving power, if it could move on its own without the help of ropes or levers or simple machines, if it could move on its_ own_, be it human or pokemon or _anything_ that could breathe and walk or swim or fly or _whatever_… anything with motor skills that it needed to survive… then it was no _item_. It was no _thing_, and to think that there were people out there that actually believed that… well, it made him sick to the stomach. He would happily fight these people to the death- protecting Wes, of course, in the process- and bring cruel people like them down.

Wes held a hand out to his pokemon, and demanded that he settle down. Moonlight simply shook his head at his beloved master, and continued growling.

The men seemed to notice Moonlight, and snickered. Blue-Hat kicked dust into his face, climbed into the car, and then they drove off.

Wes narrowed his eyes at his pokemon. "What was that for? I can take care of myself!" he insisted, not knowing himself if that was true, not even knowing whether or not his two best friends in the world believed him.

Moonlight sighed. "_**I**__ know that… and __**you**__ know that… but didn't you see what they had in that bag? They were kidnappers! And I… I didn't want them to get __**you**__ too…_" he said nervously. He scraped his paw along the ground, his ears low.

"I know, but… trust me a little, guys. I didn't like them, either, but I'm an adult now. I don't need you fighting all of my fights." Wes said apologetically. He knelt, and wrapped his blue-clothed arms around Moonlight's neck, hugging him tightly. Moonlight licked his ear happily. _"I'd like to… but I won't be anytime soon."_ Moonlight said. Daylight quickly nodded in agreement.

"Jeez, you guys sound like my parents!"

No one really said anything after that, once Wes realized his mess-up. He lead his pokemon in to get a drink, and then settled in among the few people there, sitting across from a boy that he hadn't yet met, but had offered him a seat.

The boy had a Zigzagoon sitting on his lap, lapping hungrily from the saucer of water that was sitting on the table. He kept petting the Zigzagoon, as though its spiky fur didn't bother him. "So… your name is…"

"Oh, sorry. Wes. I'm a traveler; don't normally stay much in one place at a time. Just long enough to help some people. Then I'm gone. Probably off to the next region. Oh, and these guys… they're Moonlight and Daylight." Wes said, gesturing to his pokemon respectively. Daylight purred at the mention of her name. "What about you?"

The boy grinned. "I'm Willy. I'm more of a… _Normal-type Rancher_ if you would. I kinda take after Norman in Hoenn, if you've ever heard of him… This is Spikes. He came with his name when I caught him. He's my big buddy, my super trooper, my…"

"I got it." Wes said. He sighed. "Well, I should probably get going. Places to do, people to go, things to meet… Stuff like that." He said. He sighed, and stepped out of the booth.

Willy snickered at him. "Alright. See you later." He said, waving.

"Maybe." Wes said. He closed his eyes, and started to leave the canyon, when the TV came on. There was a newscaster, she was very pretty, and she was showing a picture of the canyon that Wes had been at.

"There is still no idea on who blew up the Team Snagem base in Eclo Canyon. Unfortunately, by the time police got there, all was cleared out, and there wasn't anyone there, so there was no one that the police could turn to for clues. More will come to you as we learn more." Wes sighed. He figured it'd turned on, just for him. Just to mark the cruel things that he'd done as a-

"Come on you guys, let's go. Let's see if there's any place we can rest once day turns to night." He said. His two twin pokemon quickly agreed. Wes finally led them out, and they prepared to go.

"Hey wait!"

Wes turned to the voice of Willy, who was running out, Spikes by his side.

"Wes, wait! I saw it, the fire in your eyes, and I knew it. I want to battle you. Will you? I promise I won't be a waste of your time." Willy insisted.

Wes blinked at him, rather surprised, and then glanced down at his pokemon. The two pokemon's fur was bristling happily. Wes knew that they wanted some action; they hadn't gotten any in a while. Wes don't normally make his pokemon fight; only because he doesn't like the prospect of them getting hurt. It doesn't make him feel any better. He sighed. "Alright. When?"

"Right here, right now. Why, you scared?"

"Of course not. Come on then. I haven't got all day." Wes led Willy directly out to the front of the station.

"Wooh! Baby, I'm burning up! I'm on fire! Let's get this thing going!" Willy exclaimed. Then, he produced another pokeball from his belt, and threw it out. Another Zigzagoon popped out, shaking its furry little tail. He ordered Spikes forward.

Wes sighed. He glanced back at his best friends, and they immediately hopped forward, fur a little high. "Go ahead," he said, waving his hand.

Moonlight and Daylight grinned, and attacked along side each other happily.

"_Bite!" "Confusion!"_

Moonlight chomped down hard on Spikes' tail, flinging him around. Daylight then hit him with her confusion. The poor little Zigzagoon didn't stand a chance, fainting immediately. He cried out, and collapsed.

The other Zigzagoon shook with fear. _"…Tail Whip!"_ it cried out, shaking its little tail again.

Wes hummed. "Oh, a defense lowering move… not much we can do. Same old same old." He ordered.

"_Bite!" "Confusion!"_ It was almost like a repeat of the previous turn. The poor pokemon nearly fainted out of fright before the other two could attack it.

Finally, Wes held out the two pokeballs, and recalled his pokemon. "This battle is over." He said. He then turned, got on his hover bike, waved, and took off.

Willy sighed. "Cold guy."

* * *

End of chapter one, the prologue! XD I hope you liked it! Not the best, I know, but it's something! I personally love this story... :) I hope you will too in the future! Thanks for reading! Please review!

With love...

Ja ne! :-)


	2. Not Right

_**Shadow Uproar**_

A/N: This story is gonna include a small bit of Michael cause I love him and I want to give him some background information without having to explain everything. But, that'll probably happen later, around the time of the Realgam Colosseum and Evice. Just wanted to let you know. :)

Special thanks to: _Meta-Akira_: Thanks :) You can still write one... I think... just completely off the story line. :) I don't know _why_ there aren't more Colosseum fanfics...

_Sweetest Butterfly Kisses_: I know, right? I've always pictured him as more adult-like. I don't know why. But not more than early 20s. I'm going to do what I can to get this completed! XD

* * *

When Wes arrived in this oasis town, he immediately recognized the truck parked just inside the walls. He hopped off of his bike, and headed in.

Well, right when he got inside, he met his first task. Those two men were standing there, each holding one end of the bag that Moonlight had seen, talking to it. There _was_ someone in there.

"Now we just gotta get this girly to the boss-man in Pyrite. Then we can get a major pay raise."

"Yeah, I know man and j-" Blond-Hair noticed Wes standing there, watching the whole thing. "Shut up, man! You're not supposed to reel off the whole plan!" he hissed. Wes raised an eyebrow at the men. "What are you _doing_ here?" he asked.

Blue-Hat glared at him. "What do you care?"

"My pokemon didn't like you when they spotted you."

"Not many do. Heh heh…"

"Why don't you give me the _bag?_"

"Because it's our ticket to riches!" yelled Blue-Hat.

Wes narrowed his eyes. "How about this. I'll fight one of you, and whoever wins gets the bag." He offered, putting a hand on his belt, where Moonlight and Daylight's pokeballs were resting.

The men smirked at him. "Alright. Can do. One-on-one. Mano y mano." Said Blond-Hair.

"You seem pretty confident."

"That's because I'm _good_."

Wes snorted. "Alright. Call out your pokemon."

Blond-Hair glared, but he did as was asked. He called out two pokemon, one Whismur, and then another.

Wes released Moonlight and Daylight. Daylight sat, and then her tail started to sway. Moonlight growled. "Go on."

"_Secret Power!"_

"_Swift!"_

Moonlight swung his head around a bit, causing rocks to fly at one of the Whismur. Daylight shot stars at the other. Blond-Hair growled. "Whismurs! Use Uproar!" he ordered.

"Whis_muuuuuuuuuurrrrrrrrrr!"_ the two exclaimed.

Wes nearly screamed as he covered his ears. That sound was terrible and mind numbing! Moonlight growled in frustration, wanting to be able to help his favorite person in the world, but still unable to. Daylight growled at him to fight it, pawing at her head desperately as though she were going to protect herself from the atrocious noise. "Stop it! Moonlight, use Snatch!" he commanded, determined to take away that attack.

Moonlight blinked, still struggling with it. He had never used that attack! He didn't even know what it did! But he quickly pounced on the pokemon. _"Snatch!"_ he yelled. It paused the Whismur for a second, but didn't stop it.

"D-Daylight! U-use Swift! Now!"

_Yes, Wes… Swift! You will not hurt my trainer!"_ the Eon pokemon yelled. Stars flung from the jewel in the middle of her forehead, and attacked the screaming pokemon. One of them was blasted down, making the effect minimal, and Moonlight quickly turned on the other one. It was then down, and Wes took his hands from his ears. He glared at Blond-Hair.

"Give me the bag."

Blue-Hat reached for the brown squirming bag. "Let's scram! Grab the bag!"

"Moonlight!"

Moonlight dashed at the two men. He bit one in the leg, and then ripped the bag out of his hands. He wriggled beneath the bag, so whoever was in there wouldn't be hurt because they hit the ground. There was a yelp from inside the bag. He slid out from beneath it, so the bag gently rolled to the ground. The two men's eyes widened, and they were out of there in a second, leaving their truck behind. Two people came over worriedly, one an athlete boy, and the other a very well dressed woman. The athlete knelt by the bag, and tugged on the knot. "Man, this is tied tight. I can't get it. Can you help us?" he asked Wes, kneeling by the bag and still tugging on the knot.

Wes went over to him, and knelt to undo the knot. With the help of his pokemon, he undid the knot.

A girl with very pretty orange hair that was up in pigtails stood up from the bag. She had dark blue eyes, ones that seemed to look into his soul, almost as if they could see things his own golden eyes could not. She stretched, watching Wes with this amazed expression. "Wh-where am I? This doesn't look anything like Pyrite." She said.

"You're in Phenac City right now. Are you okay? What happened?" the woman asked.

"I was passing through the battle square in Pyrite when those crooks nabbed me!" the girl said. Wes watched her nervously, not sure what would happen. "Well you should tell the mayor!" the athlete said. "Th-the mayor? Why? It probably won't happen again!" the girl said.

"Maybe so, but the mayor can stop that from ever happening again." The athlete said.

The girl gulped. "Okay. Yeah okay, I don't want anyone else to be kidnapped!" she said. She sighed, and seemed to notice Wes for the first time. "Oh, are you my hero? Thank you so much for saving me! It was very stuffy in there!" she said.

Wes smiled at her. "You're welcome." he said. He turned, followed quickly by Moonlight and Daylight.

The girl seemed to panic. "Wait!" she said. She quickly caught up to him. "Aren't I allowed to know who my knight in shining armor is?" she asked.

"Wes. Stop following me." "Wow, your pokemon are really loyal. How did you get them so strong? You beat them like they were nothing!" "Yeah I know. I've had a lot of practice." "My name's Lily. Where're you from?"

Wes growled a little bit in exasperation. He spun to meet the girl, Lily, who 'eep'ed in surprise, and then smiled. "Do you really want me to help you?" he asked. "Uh… only if you wouldn't mind!" she said. Wes rolled his eyes. "Where are you going? The mayors? Alright, I'm guessing it's this way." He said, leading the girl to the stairs. The girl squealed in joy, and followed her new companion.

Wes rolled his eyes again, and started up the stairs, with Lily, Moonlight, and Daylight in tow. "So, do you have any pokemon of your own?" he asked. "Pokemon… of my… no. I mean, I used to, but they were stolen from me. But that was, well… that was a few years back. It's fine now. I guess…" Lily said, her eyes closing.

"Oh… I see… if Moonlight and Daylight were taken from me, I'd be devastated." Wes replied, sighing. Lily nodded. "Yeah, that's how I felt. I didn't know them as well as I'm sure you know yours, though. So, how long have you known yours?" she asked. Wes smiled. He hated talking about himself but his pokemon… he could talk about them 24/7! And he gladly would! They had so many amazing qualities. "When I was a runaway, so about 14 years. I saved them from a horde of angry Beedrill when they were abandoned in the forest by their own trainer back in Johto. The poor guys were just trying to find their way home." He said. He laughed when he felt Daylight's tail whip his backside and Moonlight's lash at his arm. They hated him talking about that, he knew that. It was still fun, though, to see what form of 'punishment', if one could call it that, he would 'endure' from them. "They were only hatchlings, too. I remember being able to pick them both up and even fit them both on my head at the same time. Can't do that anymore, obviously." He said.

Lily smiled at him. "That's cute. I wish my pokemon and I had been that close." She said.

Moonlight glanced up at her, and then at Daylight. He shrugged, and pounded up the steps of the stairs as they arrived at them. He sat, and waited.

The rest climbed the stairs, and they headed toward the big office at the edge of town.

Moonlight pawed alongside his trainer almost nervously. His fur prickled the closer he got, though why, he didn't know. Once they arrived at the door, Wes sighed. "Welp, there it is. The mayor's. After you." He said.

Lily giggled. "Why thank you!" she said. She opened the door, and let herself in.

A large, burly man in a long maroon coat- though not nearly as long as Wes's, noticed them, and glanced up from his desk. His eyes had this glint that while neither Wes nor Lily could see it, both Moonlight and Daylight could, and they held extreme unease. Both stepped in front of their trainer and bared their teeth- albeit nervously.

The mayor jumped- that's right, _jumped_- from his chair, and walked his porky body over to stand in front of Lily, who was now at the head of their group. "Hello, little lady. I'm the mayor, Es Cade. Is there something that you need?" he asked.

Lily licked her lips nervously. "Um… yeah." She glanced back at Wes, and her confidence grew. "Yes! When I was in Pyrite, I was… was _jumped_ by these people, and they took me here. But one of them had this strange pokemon, and I thought that I was going to be killed… the pokemon had this aura. It was like a fighting machine… it attacked people!"

Wes blinked at her statement in surprise. A fighting machine? That attacked people? He glanced down, and realized that half of that could be his two best friends, as they edged on a growl at the mayor.

"A fighting machine? That attacks people? My dear lady, I can assure you that nothing like that has ever-"

"Please! We don't want it to happen again." Lily folded her hands together at her chest, and pouted at the burly mayor.

The mayor looked taken aback. He frowned a little, and then smiled brightly. "Well, we must put a stop to any criminals that would try to hurt a little lady like you!" he exclaimed.

Lily blushed. "Oh, thank you, Mr. Mayor!" Lily seemed frantic to get this… this _wave_ to stop. Wes smiled at her uncharacteristically.

The mayor winked at her. "If you wish, we have a beautiful coliseum with the most _fantastic _battles. Maybe you want to check it out?" he offered.

Wes noticed him glancing down at Moonlight and Daylight, whose coats were both shining, as they growled in a small form of anger, and a bit of fear. He stepped in front of his pokemon protectively. "Oh… well yeah, good idea. Come on Lily, let's go." He said, gripping her arm and pulling her toward the door.

Lily glanced back, and nodded. "Yeah, alright. Bye, Mr. Mayor. Thanks for having us." She turned, and went outside, followed closely by Wes, who was pushing his pokemon in front of him. She turned to him. "You know, that was _pretty _rude." She said, narrowing her eyes.

"Sorry, but Moonlight and Daylight didn't like him!" Wes said, waving to Daylight, who was only just managing to relax.

"Oh, I suppose that _you_ can understand what your pokemon are _saying_." Lily spat, crossing her arms.

"Yes, as a matter of fact, I can." He hissed. He narrowed his eyes, and headed towards the coliseum.

"Wait… you can?" she squeaked out the words, fearfully.

"Ever since I was little. You can call me _whatever_ you want, I don't _care_." He spat.

"That… that's so cool! I wish _I _could understand pokemon! Do you understand how good of a trainer that'll make you?"

Wes glanced back at the orange-haired young woman. "How do you mean?"

Lily rolled her eyes. "You will be able to tend to _every_ one of their needs, right when they need it. They'll understand what you want and need better than anyone before you! _You_ will be the one to bring down any _syndicates!_" she exclaimed, quickly running up to stand beside him.

"We're not that good."

"Your pokemon can smell more than just _fear_ like most can. They can smell _evil_, untrustworthiness… they could probably _smell_ the bad guys' _plans_!" Lily said excitedly.

Both Moonlight and Daylight leaned down to lick their chest fur in embarrassment.

Wes glanced down at the ground. "Wh-whatever." He stammered. "L-let's just go."

Lily smiled when she saw a small trace of his own.

* * *

There it is! I love this story, I really do. Or, the way that I've pictured it, I do. I only hope it'll be as good as I've imagined it on the computer screen! Thanks for reading, you guys! Can you please review?

With love...

Ja ne! :-)


	3. Daylight

_**Shadow Uproar**_

Special thanks to: _Meta-Akira_: Oh really. You see what's going on here? Really? Why don't you tell me? I'm just curious what you think XD Thanks!

_RunningwithWolves11_: I know how to write, not to be rude. But sometimes I prefer doing it like this... on accident. I think I did it like that at the end of this chapter too... DX

_D.J. Scales_: AWESOME! That's for the message. :) Anyway..._Actually_ you liked it? Are you surprised or something? ...I'm kidding. Thanks :) I certainly hope it does!

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon.

* * *

Daylight leapt ahead excitedly- up the large stairs, and into the dome. Her paws struck the ground excitedly. She skidded to a stop once inside, and waited for the others. She yelped in surprise and joy when Moonlight threw himself at her, and they both rolled on the ground, brother and sister.

Wes chuckled at them in amusement. "C'mon, you guys, don't waste your energy on each other!" he said.

The two canines got up, and blushed furiously. They scampered back over to their loving trainer, tails wagging.

Wes pet them, and they all four wandered up to the reception counter.

The woman noticed them, and she spun in her chair. "Hello, you must be here to sign up for the coliseum now?" she asked.

"Yes, I am." Wes nodded.

The woman sucked in a breath, almost worried. "Ooh, well… I'm sorry, but it's already started. You'll have to come back later." She said. She flushed a little bit, and apologized again.

Wes narrowed his eyes at the ground. He felt Moonlight and Daylight's stare on him. "That's alright. We're just waiting for something to do. See you later, then. I guess." He said. He turned, and left the dome.

"Yo, Wes!"

Wes paused in his tracks, and quickly pushed his pokemon behind him. He glanced up, and saw three people in red vests and black pants- Team Snagem. He nodded at the one in the center. "Wakin." He growled.

Wakin crossed his arms. "We want it back. Give us back what you stole from us!" he snapped.

The sibling dog pokemon growled angrily. Wakin had never, ever been a friend to them. They would protect Wes and his new friend from him if they had to.

Wes glanced over at Lily nervously. "I don't know what you're talking about." He hissed.

"The _snag machine_ on your arm. Give it back!" Wakin snapped.

Wes growled. "Daylight!" he yelled.

Daylight leapt to her feet, her fur bristling.

Wakin threw out his two pokeballs on his belt, and out came a Corphish and Koffing. "Corphish, Bubble! Koffing, Smog!"

Moonlight winced when Corphish's Bubble assaulted him. Daylight reared back in surprise. "Moonlight, _Secret Power!_"

Moonlight's head whipped around, and sent the Koffing flying. "Now, Daylight, Confusion!"

Daylight happily finished off the Koffing, and whipped her head around to glare menacingly at the Corphish.

The Corphish glared at her right back. It glanced once back at his trainer. _"Now?"_

"Corphish, Vicegrip!" Wakin yelled.

Corphish clamped its front claw down on Daylight's front leg. The eon pokemon howled in pain. She tried to bite at it.

Moonlight's over-protectiveness finally hit the breaking point. He flung himself at his sister's attacker, roaring, _"Don't hurt my sister!" _His jaws clamped down on Corphish, and he tore the pokemon from his sister.

Daylight finished it off, whimpering and limping.

Wes's eyes narrowed. "Scat! Get _out_ of here!" he snapped.

"Not until we get the Snag machine, you traitor!" Wakin snapped.

Lily gasped, causing Wes to growl. "Wes, he said traitor. Does that mean-?"

"Yes, little lady. Wes used to be one of us, until be blew up our base, destroyed our bigger snag machine, and _stole_ the portable one!" Wakin hissed, his eyes never leaving Wes.

Lily turned to Wes. "Is this true?" she asked.

Wes gritted his teeth. He didn't want to tell the truth, but he had to. "Yes, it is. I was an… _elite_ member of Team Snagem until Daylight brought me a pokemon that they had _killed_ and showed me how wrong they were."

Lily gasped again. She looked lost for a moment. Wes thought she would hit him. But finally, "well, it doesn't matter who you were. It matters who you _are_. And you _are_ on the good side. And besides, you _were_ my knight in shining armor. I should trust you." She decided.

Wes sighed in relief, and nodded his thanks. He turned back to Wakin. "You were only using it for evil. At least I can find something good to do with it!" he snapped.

"Like what, steal other trainers' pokemon for your own personal gain? Big difference!" cried the Snagem to the right of Wakin.

Wes was at a loss of words. What good _would_ he do with it? Destroy it before it can be used? He didn't know. "It'll be better _here_ than with _you goons_! At least _I_ could figure out how to use it…" he spat.

Wakin growled angrily. "Gonzap already knows how! Like he needs you inferior _scum_ to make _us_ the rulers of the world!" he snapped.

Wes snorted. He whispered, "Lily get back," and then said, "Gonzap isn't smart enough to get himself out of a paper bag. Good luck with 'ruling the world'." He scoffed, "and even if he _does_ gain control, I _highly_ doubt that he is going to give a couple of," he looked them up and down, and spat, "_Peon's_ a good place in his world. He'll probably kill you once he's sure that his gaining world power is evident."

Lily gasped at his rude, cruel words. But, they were bad, so surely it didn't matter?

The peon to the left of Wakin growled at him. "He gave you food and a home, and this is how you repay him?" he demanded.

Lily blinked, and glanced at Wes, who seemed taken aback by the comment. What did that mean? She knew that Wes had been a runaway, but had the reason he had ever been in Team Snagem been simply by force, or something of the like?

Wes' eyes narrowed dangerously, and he growled, "I've already repaid him through my services, I'm in his debt no longer." He spat. Moonlight took a step forward and growled deeply as well. Daylight tossed her head to the side, and glanced at Wes, not wanting to bother with anything to do with the people that would dare bring up such a _touchy_ subject for him.

Wakin chuckled. "You will be in his debt until the day you die. He saved your life." He spat.

Finally, Daylight had had enough. She bared her teeth, swung her head around, and the blood-red jewel on her forehead glowed dangerously. Despite the fact that the attack she was about to use was a Psychic move, and so couldn't affect him, Moonlight edged a little closer to Wes, nervously afraid that he would upset her more. _"He told you to leave! What he does is of no business to you! Now go AWAY!"_ her eyes glowed an unnaturally deep purple color, oh so different from their usual light lavender. _"Psychic!"_

Moonlight leapt back in surprise, accidentally knocking over an overly shocked Lily, when the attack was called. Daylight hasn't learned that attack, she was at too low of a level, not yet! _"Daylight! Daylight, call it off; you'll hurt somebody! You can't control it!"_ he cried desperately, pulling himself to his feet.

The next thing that they knew, the three Snagem Peons were lifted into the air, swung around, and practically thrown, their six poke balls dropping to the ground. Wes, having been struck in the chest by one of the peon's flailing limbs, was on the ground, staring at his partner, gasping for breath and partway wishing he hadn't seen what he thought he'd seen. No way could she have done this!

Lily was also recovering from the onslaught of Moonlight accidentally knocking her over. She was staring unblinkingly at Wes' Psychic best friend.

The cat-like pokemon was swaying on her paws, muttering strange things under her breath, her eyes fading from the deep purple to her normal light lavender. Her jewel was now pitch black.

"Wes…" Lily hissed.

Wes's head shot up. "Daylight!" he called.

Daylight, head pounding, glanced up at her beloved trainer. She tried to move her paws, to make sure that she was alright, but the second she lifted one, she collapsed.

"_Daylight!"_ Moonlight leapt up and rushed to his sister. _"Daylight, it's okay! We're gonna bring you to the Pokemon Center and get you fixed up, it's alright, right Wes?"_ he demanded.

Wes nodded. "Of course. Now come on. We'd better get a move on." He said. He went to her, stooped, and lifted her into his arms. He turned to Moonlight. "Run ahead and warn the nurse. The Center was on the first level, right?" he said.

Moonlight nodded, and took off for the stairs, racing down them, around the small dip where the big round building was (whatever it was), and down the stairs again.

Wes trotted along behind him, holding Daylight tight to him. Lily came up after him as well. Finally, they made it to the Center, having to walk slowly to not jar Daylight awake too forcefully. He set her down at the counter in front of the nurse, who, along with their Chansey, took her into the back room.

Wes sighed in relief, and sank into a chair. Moonlight nervously jumped into his lap and laid down, whimpering a little.

Lily sat next to him. She wrung her hands together, and fingered the cloth seat of the chair. "Can I… um… ask you something, Wes?" she whispered.

Wes glanced at her, sighed as though knowing what she would ask, and said, "Alright, fine. Shoot." Moonlight glanced at Wes anxiously, and then Lily, and waited for something along the line of fear and tears.

"You said that you were a runaway, and then they said that Gonzap gave you food and shelter… what did they mean?" she asked, blinking up at him.

Wes sighed, and hung his head. "When I was about 17, over in Johto where I'm from, this big guy came across me, I honestly thought he was going to attack me. My two pokemon, who were Eevees at the time, were only at level 8, his were at level 50, they'd have been flattened in a second. He didn't attack- I was lucky- but he said… he said that he'd been watching me, and had seen me collecting berries to feed and heal my Eevees. He was worried, he said. That should have been a signal, I know it should have, but it wasn't. I didn't like… essentially, I didn't like believing in bad people. Call me childish, but… it's true. And Daylight couldn't scent anything wrong about him, and she was always much more empathetic than Moonlight as an Eevee. Now they're about the same. Daylight's just better at hiding it…" he glanced over at the door, hoping desperately that the light would go out to signal that whatever surgery or something was being preformed on Daylight was over, and that she'd be fine. "…Sometimes…"

Lily creased her eyebrows. "So then what happened?"

"He offered us a place to stay as long as we did what he said. And we did for a while. He trained me, but not just with Daylight and Moonlight, with other pokemon too, saying that I had to get used to others. As much as I didn't like it, what could I do?" Wes sighed deeply. "Not much, that was for sure." He whispered.

Moonlight nuzzled his black head against his best friend's stomach as Wes leaned over him to set his elbows on his knees.

"Well… last week, Daylight brought me a pokemon… a pokemon that'd been killed by them. It over-exerted itself, wasn't up to their liking, so they killed it. A Meowth. One that _I'd trained_. I was supposed to teach it how to obey, and since I couldn't, it's dead. I… sometimes…" Wes gulped, and pressed his forehead to his Umbreon's back. "Sometimes I'd give anything to have that little cat with me. Just because I should have been able to protect it better. But since I _couldn't_ it's _dead_."

Lily nodded. "Things _can_ happen that are out of our control. It happens a lot. You know that, I know that. Moonlight knows it. You cannot deny that, Wes." She said.

"No, but I can try."

Lily sighed and smiled. "I'm sure that that little Meowth doesn't blame you, Wes. I know that it doesn't. It couldn't." she whispered to him fondly.

Wes turned a little away from her.

"hey…" Lily chuckled. She stood. "I'm gonna get some water. Want some?" she asked.

Wes shook his head, but pushed Moonlight off of his lap. "Go with her, Moonlight. You need to drink some."

Moonlight watched him, unsure. But, the man ignored him, turning to watch the door again, waiting for his cat-like pokemon to be done. He sighed, and trotted swiftly after Lily, who was leaving the Center. _"Where are we going?"_ he asked, his tail softly tipping each time he took a step.

Lily ignored him, continuing on toward the fountain.

It was then that Moonlight remembered; she _couldn't_ understand what he was saying. He'd been with Wes so long, that he forgot all humans couldn't understand pokemon. He tried once more, just to get her attention. "Umbre umbreon?"

Lily glanced down at him, and then smiled. "Sorry, 'dyou say something?" she asked kindly.

Moonlight just shrugged, and followed her as she turned from the fountain toward the shop.

Lily declined her head a little, and explained their destination; "At the Shop, they sell lots of bottles of water pretty cheaply, and they'll water a pokemon for free. So we're gonna go there. And may as well get Wes one as well."

Moonlight nodded cheerfully. _"Okay."_

They went into the shop, and Moonlight trotted over to the water fountain beside the check out. Lily went to look around.

A woman was standing in back, on the first floor, looking at a certain selection. Lily went to chat to her. "Hello." She said.

The woman turned to her, bit her cheek, and nodded in greeting. Lily frowned a little. "Do you know where the water bottles are?" she asked. The woman nodded over to a section a little way away. Lily rolled her eyes and went to get it.

There weren't any, it didn't seem. She looked everywhere, before sighing and giving up. Moonlight trotted up to her, confused. Lily went to the woman. "There weren't any." She said a little coldly.

The woman shrugged. She narrowed her eyes.

Lily licked her lips, and suddenly thought about Wes, and of that machine on his arm, and of the fighting machine that she'd seen. "Do you… do you know if there are any poke balls?"

The woman looked surprised that she'd asked such a question, and finally spoke. "Poke balls? Why, we haven't had any need for _those_ in _years_! There _are_ no wild pokemon anymore; what would you _need _them for?" The woman laughed at her, almost uncontrollably. Then, she settled at the look that Lily had. "Whoo… anyway, there's this little restaurant outside of Phenac. It's called Outskirt Stand; it looks like a train engine. They were the last to sell them; perhaps they'd know. Now shoo, I have to shop."

Lily blinked in surprise. She nodded. "Okay, thanks." She said. Then, she backed away, and left the shop, Moonlight right by her side. She sighed. "Well, that was almost useless. C'mon, back to the Center, I guess."

Moonlight nodded, and dashed ahead to the Pokemon Center to see if his sister was yet all right.

Wes was still sitting there, but now he was chatting with a Chansey. He glanced up to see his best friend run to him and leap up into his lap. _"Is my Daylight okay yet?"_ he asked both the Chansey and Wes.

Chansey smiled at him. _"She will be. We're all done, but she has to rest. It won't be for long, then she can go."_ She said.

Wes smiled. "Good. …Can we go see her?" he asked.

Chansey nodded. _"Come with me."_

They followed her closely. She led them into a room, where Daylight was laying on a bed, her beautiful eyes closed. Wes approached her, and sat by her side. "Thanks for taking care of me, Daylight." He whispered. "Thanks… thanks for protecting me. _Us_."

* * *

Wow... I was totally redundant in there... haha sorry. :) Anyway, thanks for reading, please review! Thanks soooo much!

With love...

Ja ne! :-)


	4. Right off the Story line

_**Shadow Uproar**_

Special thanks to: _Meta-Akira_: ...Well... hmm... thanks for the review! :) And I'm glad you liked the background :)

_D.J. Scales_: Yeah it is. She'll probably have difficulty with it, but she'll have to learn eventually. Once she's 'of age' as in 'on the right level' then her psychic abilities will be enough to control it. Thank you:)

A/N: I know that this chapter is ENTIRELY off topic. But you know... who WOULDN'T want to learn about the Legendary canines of Johto? :) I know I probably made this really weird for them to act, but I really wanted to give them a real connection for the future... I hope you like this chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own pokemon.

* * *

Large paws struck the ground as their owner chased playfully after the one human that he and his brother and sister could trust. The child cried happily, and made a flying leap toward the Aurora pokemon, hiding behind her, trying to escape the fiery wrath of a playful Entei.

The Volcano pokemon shook himself out, and lowered himself, growling at the boy behind Suicune. Suicune's eyebrows rose, and she got to her feet to crouch in front of their friend.

Their brother, the Thunder pokemon Raikou, was laying at the lake's edge where they were. He chuckled a little and laid his head down. He brought his paws a little closer to himself.

"_Try it and I'll spray you Entei."_ Suicune taunted playfully as Entei prepared to pounce. _"I'm not afraid of a little water."_ Entei replied. He leapt and landed with his front paws on Suicune's back. They tumbled, and wrestled for a bit, the boy watching cheerfully from the sidelines.

Raikou stalked over to him and nudged his back a little. _"They sure are dumb, aren't they?"_ he purred, making the boy laugh and nod.

Suicune and Entei quit their fight, and they stared at their brother who, noticing the look on their faces, crouched to attack before they could jump him. However, before he could, he was barreled over by his brother, and then tackled by his sister. They started to wrestle some, until they almost squashed the child.

Suicune's normally playful nature changed to a serious one, and she sniffed the air. She growled a little, and both her brothers knew to leave her alone. _"Ugh, humans and their contaminations! Pokemon live in those lakes!"_ she cried angrily, turning toward where she knew the contaminated lake was.

"_Do you want us to come with you?"_ Entei whispered, afraid that her fury would be turned on him who, being a fire type, would be severely affected by her attacks.

Suicune sighed, and asked, _"Can you keep up?"_

"_We can certainly try."_ Raikou assured.

Their little human friend- only seven years of age- knew exactly what this was about. He knew that Suicune could scent contaminated water from miles away, and that she had to go and fix it.

She prepared to take off to the lake, but she stopped herself, and turned to their human. _"Should we bring you back to your home?"_ she whispered.

The boy blinked and shrugged, until Entei offered, _"or perhaps he'd like to see a little Suicune magic in the making?"_

Raikou nodded in agreement. _"He should at least stay around a little more!"_ he cried hopping once and wagging his backsides excitedly. He loved going to see Suicune purify most of all! And, of course, hanging around with their family of four. What could be better?

The redheaded boy glanced at Suicune, and he stood. "Could I, Suicune? Please? I promise I won't get in the way!" he said. He didn't want to go back to the orphanage, where he was picked on and taunted because he could do what very few people could.

Suicune glanced at him for at least a full minute. Then, not wanting to see him hurt the next time they saw him, she sighed and nodded. _"Alright, but you stay around one of us. Don't wander off!"_ she scolded.

He nodded. "I won't! Thanks Suicune!"

Entei approached, and crouched to the boy for him to get on. Raikou gripped the back of his shirt in his jaws and lifted him onto the Volcano pokemon's back. _"Hold on tight, kiddo."_ Entei growled. Then, following Suicune closely, he took off.

Raikou chased his brother and sister directly behind the fire pokemon, should their human charge fall or slip or anything of the kind. But thankfully, the child listened closely to Entei, and didn't release his mane until they'd come to a stop beside a dirty lake.

Suicune huffed in anger, and took a few steps to find the source of the disgusting contaminates. Entei crouched for the child to climb down, and then approached her, Raikou- with the boy holding him tightly- following afterwards.

Entei sat, and scrunched up his nose. _"It smells horrible. How do humans stand this?"_ he asked.

Suicune shrugged, and prepared to pounce at the water. _"I need you two to shoot your attacks at that,"_ she directed to a large pump pouring dirt and other gross stuff into the lake, _"and plug it up. Otherwise it won't stop. I'll get these humans to stop contaminating yet!"_ then she leapt, and Entei and Raikou shot their blasts at the pipe.

The human clung tightly- this time to Entei, lest he be shocked- and glanced around nervously. He felt exposed, like something would attack. He looked at Suicune, and watched in amusement as she leaped, essentially walking on water. And suddenly-

"Slaking! _Use Hyper Beam!_"

She was blasted to the ground on the other side of the lake as a beam of energy struck her mid-leap. She tried to shake it off, but it _hurt_. Why were they attacking? She glanced toward her family, and noticed someone approach them, who the human was watching now, nervously hiding behind one of Entei's front legs.

It was a human- a fairly older man. He had a Slaking lumbering by his side, and a Salamence and Scizor flying above him.

"Entei!"

Entei whipped around, and pushed their charge behind him. His fur rose. _"What do you want?"_ he demanded.

The human ignored him, and looked at the Salamence. He pointed toward the two dogs and the child.

The Salamence seemed to grin, and opened its mouth wide to attack. Raikou growled and slid in next to Entei. _"Fire Blast!"_

A spout of fire surrounded them, and Entei tucked the boy beneath him, until one Silver Wind from the Scizor exploded at his feet, knocking him away from his brother and the boy far from him.

The boy was weak- had always seemed to be. Being young did, of course, have something to do with it, but he was still weak. And in the explosion, he was sent flying, landing in a contaminated bit of water and dipping beneath it.

Despite the pain, Suicune leapt to her feet. "_No! Nonono! I'm coming!"_ She leapt on the water, purifying as she went, and when she got to the child's landing place, instead of purifying, she ducked and went under. She kicked her feet and as soon as she was in reach, grabbed the back of his shirt, and swam the boy up to the surface. She then swam quick as she could to shore.

Growling, Entei turned to Raikou, expecting him to take care of things here.

"_You go to him! He needs you now! I can't keep him all warm; you can! I can fight this guy!"_ Raikou assured, throwing a Thunder Bolt up at the Scizor, who dodged.

Entei nodded, grateful, and dashed toward the human, who was spluttering and coughing beneath Suicune's watchful eye.

"_Are you okay?"_ he asked. He nudged him nervously.

The boy glanced at him, wiped at his nose, and nodded. "Think so. Just shaken a little. You?"

Entei couldn't help but smile at the child. _"I'm fine. Are you cold?"_

Shaking, the boy nodded once. Entei growled a little, angry at the man for attacking them, and then glanced at Suicune. _"Go help Raikou. I don't care how strong he is, he can't do this on his own. I'll be over in a minute."_

Suicune nodded, licked their charge's cheek once, and then dashed off toward the other side of the lake, where the fight was.

Entei crouched and nudged him a few times. _"Don't be afraid, okay? It won't hurt you, I promise."_ He said. Then, he took a few steps back, and opened his mouth.

"Entei what are you doing?"

Flames shot out, and he surrounded the boy, with a big enough ring of fire so he wouldn't actually be burned. _"Stay in there until one of us comes to get you, okay? The fire won't hurt you; it'll keep you warm, dry, and SAFE. Just please listen to me and stay."_ He said.

The boy was shaking inside the Ring. "P-please Entei… D-don't…" he whimpered, glancing at the fire around him.

Entei sighed, turned toward his siblings, and whispered, _"I've promised to protect you a number of times, and for the first time, I've had to. I WILL keep you safe."_ He took off toward the battle.

The man released all of his pokemon; the rest consisting of a Tyranitar, a Machamp, and a Slowking. It was frightening to see so many pokemon fighting them with such ferocity. And the really scary part… they were _losing_. They hadn't lost a fight in a long time, especially not when it came to their charge's safety, but they were losing, badly. Suicune had a limp, and was only attacking with long-distance attacks, leaning against Entei for support. Raikou's fur was scratched and bleeding, but he was still puffing on.

But then, the man did it. He took out three pokeballs, the dreaded things that the siblings had all their lives done what they could to avoid, and sent his Tyranitar toward the Ring. Entei spun around, but the pokeball caught him and his siblings, and locked him in place; so he was unable to move. He tried to escape, and did too, but then they saw something horrible that basically made them give up.

The Tyranitar trampled the Ring of Fire- and everything in it- down to the ground. Suicune cried out desperately, wishing that she could step just seconds back in time and stop the Tyranitar, but then the pokeball shut around her, and she was trapped.

Entei fought, watching his charge, his friend, his _family_ be _killed_ mercilessly, until he too was trapped in the horrible thing forever. 'I'm sorry I failed you…'

Raikou was the last standing, though he'd given up. He stared in horror, shaking his head, and just let himself be at least with his siblings.

The man grinned at his Tyranitar, catching the three pokeballs easily. He smiled at his pokemon, and said, "back to the lab. _These_ three belong with my most _trusted _Admins. Venus, Dakin, and Ein. I hope that they can use them well." And with that, he jumped onto his Salamence and, trusting his Tyranitar- who was in the process of being _truly_ corrupted- to finish the task that he'd assigned for him. There could be _no_ witnesses.

-Ring of Fire-

Tyranitar had put out the fire by trampling through it. He'd considered crushing the boy beneath him, but that wouldn't quite get the job done. Not right, not to him.

Now he had him, pressed against a tree, his feet dangling. He was listening to the boy plea. "P-please don't… please! I've got a sister, I have to take care of her, please!" the boy cried, clawing at his hands.

"_You saw the battle, boy. More so, you saw my master. And master says no witnesses. What am I to do but kill you?"_ Tyranitar growled.

The boy gulped, and tears filled his eyes. "P-please, I won't tell, promise! I won't tell anybody! Forever! Just please… please don't kill me…" His head struck the ground as he was thrown down. The Tyranitar stepped over him, growling in fury. _"And how am I to trust you?"_

"P-please, I won't! I won't tell I won't tell I won't tell… please…" the boy shook his head, and sobbed.

The Tyranitar sucked in a breath, his anger slowly subsiding. He stepped over the boy.

The child sat up and watched him nervously. "I won't tell, I promise. You… you c'n come and kill me if I do, I guess…" he whispered.

Poor Tyranitar was torn. Torn between what his Master had told him to do, and what his conscious told him to do. _"If you dare say a word to anybody, even this sister of yours, then I will come and I will find the slowest, most painful form of torture possible, and I will torture you with it, and then I will kill you. You hear?"_

The child nodded. He screamed when the Tyranitar's hand came at his throat, once again pinning him to the ground. _"Do you hear?"_ he roared.

"I hear I hear! Please!"

Growling, Tyranitar released him. He turned around and allowed the boy to sit up.

"W-wait… what happened to Entei and Suicune and Raikou?" the human whispered.

Tyranitar couldn't _help_ but grin. _"Let's just say this, boy. Your little heroes won't be able to be much heroes when we are through with them. You'll be lucky if you never have to meet them."_

He then left, toward his Master, leaving the boy crying, horrified that he'd lost most of what little family he had left. For good.

* * *

So... how was it? This was a really fun chapter to write. I thought of it last night, I was sooo bored... but yeah, this is what came of it.

So then... I hope you liked it, and I promise that next chapter I WILL get back to Wes and Lily.

Thanks for reading! Please review (please)!

With love...

Ja ne! :-)


	5. Fighting Machine

_**Shadow Uproar**_

Special thanks to: _D.J. Scales_: DUDE! Stop figuring stuff out so fast... haha Thanks for reviewing. And as much as that is an awesome idea, (because it truly is) I already have other plans for little Michael. In this story, I mean. And the sequel, but you know how it is. Again, thanks for reviewing :)

_Meat-Akira_: Why thank you! :) And I'm sorry it wasn't as soon as I'd have liked, but this chapter is REALLY long. There isn't even all that much that actually happens. There's quite a bit of information though... anyway... Thanks for reviewing!

A/N: Just one question... why are all of my reviewers so smart? I'm serious! You two have already kind of figured some stuff out. It's scary...

* * *

The Outskirt stand was as pitiful as the last time he'd seen it. Wes walked up the ramp, followed by his two pokemon and Lily, who was staring around in amazement. He led them inside and to the counter. He leaned against it until the man there noticed him.

"Hello, can ah help yeh with anythin'?" the man asked.

Wes nodded. "yeah. I've heard that you might still have pokeballs, and I was just wondering if you do."

The man looked surprised. He stared at Wes for an entire minute, trying to figure out if he was being serious or not. Then, he decided that he was, and turned around, ducking beneath the counter. "Ah might. Can't say that ah do, though. Yeah, here the little buggers are! They're a little dusty, mind, but they should work just the same. I'll give 'em to yeh fer free, since yeh asked."

The man lifted a box up to the counter, and in it sat six red and white balls- pokeballs.

Wes picked them up, stared at them for a second, before pocketing them.

The man bent down and lifted a much larger box. "May as well sell what else ah got. Yeh c'n come on back here if yeh ever need some more of 'em. They'll be here waitin'."

Wes nodded at him, and whispered a quick word of thanks. He'd never expected this! He glanced down at his two pokemon who were both starting to pant in the heat. Yeah, it _was_ quite hot and stuffy, even with the fans running.

The man seemed to notice this, and said, "Hey, if yeh're planning to go on a journey for summat, why don'tcha stock up here? Ah got some stuff you might like. Here's a little list." He pushed a piece of paper in front of Wes.

Wes scanned it over, and shook his head. "nothing. Thanks though. I'll probably be back." He said. He waved, turned, and led his pack out.

Daylight whined quietly, leaning against Moonlight once they made it out to the hoverbike. She laid her head on his shoulder.

Wes took out Moonlight and Daylight's pokeballs, and returned them. He climbed on his bike, and waited for Lily to get in the sidecar as well. Then, he revved up, and they headed back toward Phenac City.

The trip was about 20 minutes. When they arrived, it seemed normal… but there was an air of danger in the air, especially with those three weird men, one in blue, one in red, and one in green uniforms walking about.

Lily seemed worried immediately, as she took steps inside the city gates. Then she went back to Wes, afraid.

Wes knew exactly what she was thinking. If bad men were to visit anyone in such a small town, who would it be? And then it struck him. The _mayor_. "C'mon, we'd better go…" he said. He didn't even bother to take out his two pokemon, instead racing around the fountain and up the stairs, to the left of the building-in-a-hole, and into the mayor's house.

Wes pushed Lily back quickly when he saw who was there. The men that'd taken her in the first place and some other man who looked like he shouldn't have left the 80s.

"Boss, look! It's him! The one who took the girl from us!" Blond-Hair was pointing at them.

The 80s man turned to them and raised his eyebrows at them. "Folly, Trudly, is this him? This little boy? Oh, but you must be kidding me!" he shook his head, and stared at Lily for a second. "Darling, was it Wes that you called yourself? I believe that that's what they said… Darling, we're not at liberty to keep your little lady friend at liberty. She can do something that is going to put our plans at odds so… I'm going to have to ask you to hand her over."

Wes growled a little and Lily shivered, whispering "Wes…"

The man turned toward his lackeys and said, "boys. Oh boys!" The men stood to attention. "yes, we will!" "Boys, I'll be heading back to Pyrite now. Meet me there once you have the girl. I won't accept failure, boys. You know that. Let the music spin!" And with that, the 80s man got into a disco pose and he left, sweeping around Wes and Lily, followed closely by the three colored men that had come in just seconds before the team.

Wes raised his eyebrows at the two men left. Then he got defensive. "What did you do with the mayor?" he demanded.

Blond-hair- either Trudly or Folly- scoffed. "We haven't done anything with him. What _I_ want to know is why you're here. I know you ain't here to just hand over the girl." He smirked. "Unless…"

Lily hid a bit more behind him. Wes shook his head. "I wouldn't think of it."

The man growled. "Well you… you just caught me off guard last time! This time it's gonna be different. Now remember this… I'm Folly and _this time_ I am gonna kick your BUTT with my pokemon! Go, team!" he released a Whismur and a Lotad.

Wes removed his pokeballs. "Go, Moonlight and Daylight!"

Moonlight, once he was out, gave him a look, and Wes knew exactly what was wrong. He rolled his eyes, and directed toward the battle. "Alright, Moonlight, use Secret Power! Daylight, Confusion!"

Arrows shot at the Lotad, and they knocked it over onto its leafy head. It scrambled back up and growled.

Daylight's jewel glowed even brighter than before, and suddenly the Whismur was rocking back and forth, holding its head, looking confused. It glanced around.

Folly growled. "Whismur… WHISMUR! _OVER HERE!_ Gah… use Pound! Lotad, Water Gun!"

Daylight barely danced out of the way of the flying Whismur, and Moonlight turned a little and let his tail hit the water jet and spray little droplets up at him. He chuckled.

"You guys!"

Both sent a scolding look to their trainer. _"Yeah, yeah."_ Moonlight said.

"Attack!"

"_Bite!"_

"_Return!"_

The two little pokemon fainted, collapsing to the ground. "No! Not again!" their trainer cried. He returned his pokemon and took several steps back.

The other one- Blue Hat- Trudly, Wes figured- stepped forward. "Now it's my turn! And I won't end up like Folly!"

Moonlight and Daylight growled as the man threw out two pokeballs. Out of them came a Duskull and a Spinarak. The Spinarak hissed, and the Duskull flipped up and around, its hands flipping in the breeze coming from the still open door.

Daylight's ears went down as she stared at Spinarak. Its type was good against both of theirs.

Moonlight glanced over at her, and she felt a little better. Even without Wes' command, they both leapt forward at once. _"Secret Power!" "Return!"_

The Spinarak hissed and spit, but it fell back on its back, collapsing. Moonlight's ears went back slightly, and he spat in anger at the small spider.

Trudly gripped another pokeball. "Thankfully I have my _backup!_ Go Makuhita!"

A small, fattish yellow pokemon came out of the pokeball. One fist hit the other, and it didn't seem to have any emotions at all. Daylight took a step back, despite her type being good against its.

Lily gasped rather loudly, and she hid even more behind Wes. "Wes, that's the pokemon! The one that I saw! The one like a fighting machine; I can see a black aura surrounding it! Can't you?" she said.

Wes shook his head. He could feel it though. There was something about this pokemon that was just a little off.

The Makuhita swung its fist back, rushed forward, and attacked…

Between Moonlight and Daylight! It attacked Wes!

Wes clutched his stomach tightly, wincing in pain. "Er… what are you doing?" he demanded.

"Wes, be careful! This pokemon isn't afraid to attack people! It won't even listen to that man; he didn't tell him to do that!" Lily furrowed her eyebrows as her eyes drifted lazily down Wes' arm. "Wes… Wes you have to snag it! That's it, that's how we'll use the Snag Machine for good! Catch it! You can do it! …In fact, _only_ you can do it!"

Moonlight growled angrily. _"How dare you?"_ he screamed. _"Bite!"_ He bit down hard on the pokemon's fist, but it punched at him and sent him flying. He plummeted to the ground, smacking it painfully.

"_Moonlight! Brother, are you okay? Oh, I'll take care of this guy, don't worry brother!"_ Daylight cried. The jewel on her forehead glowed brightly. _"Confu-"_ "-You guys don't beat it!" Her jewel went out rather quickly. Both Daylight and Moonlight- struggling as he was- glanced at their beloved trainer. _"What? Why not?"_ Daylight whispered.

"Because Lily's right, we have to Snag it. I can help it, I know!" Wes cried.

Daylight's ears went down, but she agreed. Then she growled. _"Fine! Return!"_

The Makuhita was struck several times, and then thrown to the ground. It growled and struggled to stand up.

"okay, Daylight, that's enough, I think!" Wes was gripping a pokeball tightly. He closed his eyes; hoping it would work, and then cried, "Go pokeball!"

The Makuhita tried to fight the ball once it was inside, but it couldn't. It rocked once, twice, three times, and then it settled. Daylight used her powers to give it back to Wes, who clutched it almost like it was a lifeline.

Trudly looked surprised. "W-well that doesn't matter! My backup was my Duskull anyway! Duskull, Will o' Wisp!"

Two small balls of flame floated toward both pokemon. Daylight reared back in surprise as a burn overtook her body. Moonlight whined loudly.

Moonlight forced himself to stand; with Duskull being a Ghost pokemon, Daylight couldn't hardly attack it. He panted once. _"B-Bite!"_ he cried. He leapt toward the Ghost pokemon, and chomped down as hard as he could.

"_Moonlight, be careful!"_

Moonlight brushed her off as he continued to bite down on the Duskull. It was crying out in pain, and he cried out a little every time the burn savaged.

Finally, it fell. Limp in his jaws, it hit the ground as he released it. Then, Moonlight limped over to his sister, who licked his forehead softly.

Wes turned an angry eye on Trudly, who looked almost afraid. "D-darn it; my pokemon! You're good, must be to have Snagged my Makuhita. I'll give you that."

Folly growled. "You're not supposed to be impressed! Man, what are you doing?"

Trudly turned to Folly. "I don't know. But Miror B.'s gonna be mad… Come on! Run away!" The man left, not even managing to bring their dignity with them.

Lily smiled and giggled a little. She hugged Wes. "You did it, Wes! You Snagged it! There must be plenty more, but now we know you can do it!" she cried.

Wes smiled faintly at her, and then went out to his pokemon. "Good job, you guys. I'm proud." He put his arms around both of his pokemon. Then, he lifted Moonlight. "Back to the Pokemon Center. Thankfully, this doesn't seem nearly as bad." He commented. Both of the siblings nodded.

They turned to leave, going out of the front door. "…I wonder what happened to the Mayor?" Lily wondered aloud. Wes shrugged. "Maybe he's at the colosseum." He said. "Maybe…"

Wes blinked in surprise once they were out in the bright sunlight. The Green Man that was by Miror B.- the 80s man- was at the one exit closest to the Mayor's house. They went out into the town, and found the Red Man at the exit on the opposite side. Going down the stairs, they discovered that the Blue Man was at the front entrance.

"_Wes, why are they all here?" _Moonlight whispered. Wes shrugged. Sighing, he carried his best friend in the Center.

The Nurse looked him over, and rolled her eyes. "This will be easy. If I could just have the pokeball it'll be done in a jiffy."

Wes handed the ball over- and the ball of Makuhita- curiously.

It really was, as she'd said, done in a jiffy. She returned Moonlight, set the balls on a machine, and turned it on. Within seconds it was done, and she was handing them back to him.

Wes took them in surprise. "That was fast." The Nurse smiled. "I know. We've gotten this machine where you just need to scan the pokeball and it fixes it. I wasn't willing to try it out on your Espeon earlier because I didn't know if it would work, but I healed a totally fainted pokemon back to full health with it. You'll find all Centers have this now."

Moonlight reappeared from his ball, and Wes crouched. "Feeling better, buddy?" he asked. _"Loads."_ Moonlight replied. He stretched his back legs, and leapt up to greet Daylight.

Daylight sighed. _"You're going to hurt yourself if you're not careful."_ she commented.

Moonlight chuckled. _"Too late."_

Wes sighed. "We should head out, you guys. We have to get to Pyrite and see what that man was doing."

Daylight and Moonlight glanced up at him, and they leapt up to follow Wes. _"Wes, Wes! Can we meet that Makuhita guy? Please, if he's going to work with us we have to know him!"_ Daylight cried. She purred and brushed her muzzle along his hand.

Wes rolled his eyes. "We don't have time." He said.

"_How do you know? Besides, those people are out there blocking the entrances, so we can't go yet!" _Moonlight argued.

Wes sighed. "I suppose. But be careful, Moonlight especially. His type is good against yours." He scolded.

"_I will hold him fast with my psychic power should he dare try to touch Moonlight!"_

Makuhita blinked when he was released in rather a blinding light. He held his fist above his eyes to block out the harsh artificial light of the Pokemon Center. He glanced around. _"Where am I? And… and who are you people?"_

Wes winced. He couldn't hear what the Makuhita was saying, only a low growl that he wasn't even making. "I can't even hear him…" he said. He was suddenly very afraid. What could those people have done to Makuhita that its voice wouldn't even work?

Daylight noticed that he was flustered, and glanced back to translate to him.

Lily was surprised that his voice got so quiet. She didn't even know that it could. Sure, she hadn't known him long, but still.

Wes crouched beside his best friends, wincing when the Makuhita flinched away from him. "It's okay, buddy, it's okay. I'm here to help you. You can't _possibly_ enjoy being like that, can you? Well… I'm going to fix you." He declared.

It came to him like a surprise migraine. It hurt at first, actually knocked him down so he was sitting and had to hold his head in his hands. But the important thing was, he knew what to do. _There must be plenty more, but now we know you can do it!_ Wasn't that what Lily had cried after their latest battle? He _had_ told Wakin that he could do something good with the Snag Machine. This was it!

Thinking that maybe Wes was sick, Daylight brushed her tail softly against his back, while Moonlight pushed his head against his chest. _"Wes, are you alright? Do you feel sick? Should we sit down? I'm sure that that man can wait until you're all better, can't he?"_ Daylight muttered.

"I'm fine, I'm fine! But I know what to do! Lily was right, there must be plenty other pokemon like you out there, and we _have _to help them. Makuhita, Daylight, Moonlight, _return!_"

Wes struggled to his feet, and then left the Center briskly. If he was right, then he had pokemon to save, time couldn't be spent dawdling- whether he was sick or not!

Lily followed after, surprised at this newfound determination.

They went to the nearest exit- since Phenac was surrounded by a big brick wall and there were for whatever reason only three exits- only to find a man in blue standing there, waiting.

The man glared at him, crossing his arms, when he tried to get past. "Sorry, but unless you _honestly_ think that you can beat me, I can't let you past. And, well, good luck with that." He taunted.

Wes growled a little. He hated snooty people like that. Yes, he'd have to battle. It was the only way to get through and to Pyrite. He slowly contemplated which of his pokemon to use- now with a third it didn't just come as instinct to toss out the two heavier pokeballs that he had- in fact, normally the _only_ pokeballs he had. He had to decide. 'No, that can wait. I want to see what pokemon he has before I do anything.' He thought.

"Go, Croconaw and Grimer! Teach this idiot a lesson!"

Wes snorted. He immediately went for Moonlight and Daylight's pokeballs, but then stopped and thought. 'There must be a way to open Makuhita's heart. Well, I don't know about him, but when I battle with Moonlight and Daylight I feel a connection that you can't really get outside of the battlefield. Maybe it's the same…' So yes, Makuhita was his first choice. He gripped the corrupted pokemon's ball, and scanned over the types for the two others. 'Croconaw. Water type. I've met one once, it's also good with Dark type moves, but mostly Crunch and Bite. But Psychic types and Dark types aren't good against it. Not bad against it either. Grimer, however, is a Poison type, right? Never met one, but what else could it possibly be? Psychic types are good against Poison types. That settles it.' "Go, Daylight and Makuhita!" The two pokemon appeared there, Makuhita hopping eagerly for a chance to fight, Daylight relaxed upon seeing Grimer.

Lily almost tripped backwards. There was another one! "Wes… WES! That Croconaw… I think they closed its heart! You have to catch it!"

Wes was just glad it wasn't the Grimer. "Alright. Daylight, use your Confusion to take out Grimer! Makuhita… I'm not sure of your attacks. Use what you used on _me!_"

Makuhita growled, knowing exactly what move his Master was talking about. He lowered his head, and attacked. _"Shadow Rush!"_ he screamed, throwing him forward and assaulting the Grimer.

Grimer howled in pain, and was positively knocked out when Daylight's Confusion struck it.

The blue-clad man was obviously angry as he returned his Grimer. "Grimer, next time you had better win, lest you want the wrath of Bluno thrust upon you!" he snapped. Then, he dug in his pockets for another ball. "Go _Spoink!_" he cried.

Wes winced. 'Darn it… But I don't want to withdraw Makuhita yet… Oh well.' He took out Daylight's ball, returned her, and tossed out Moonlight's. "Alright, we can deal with this. Go _Moonlight!_"

Moonlight shook out his tail, and then got into his battle stance.

The Croconaw seemed to be watching the exchange with mild interest, its eyebrows raised. Finally, it turned to Moonlight, and leapt. It used the same attack that Makuhita had used.

Moonlight cried out in pain. "No, Moonlight!" The Moonlight pokemon growled, recovering quickly. He waited patiently for Wes' command, glancing back at him.

"Grr… Moonlight, Secret Power! Makuhita, _you_ attack the Spoink!"

Moonlight leapt forward, dancing on his paws to attack Croconaw. Rocks flew at the Big Jaw pokemon, and it was absolutely covered in them, unable to escape. Then, Moonlight danced back to his trainer proudly, knowing that he had not fainted the Croconaw but only injured it.

Wes and Moonlight turned to Makuhita, waiting for him to attack the Spoink, who was hopping anxiously, waiting to see what attack would be thrown its way.

Makuhita was shaking and swaying a little bit, holding his head in his mighty fists. He moaned once in pain, rubbing his forehead.

At first, Wes thought that he'd somehow gotten sick. Maybe attacking the Grimer had gotten an infection in him? He tried the first thing that came to his mind, at least call to him to see if he was okay. "Makuhita? Hey, bud, you feeling okay? I can pull you out!"

Makuhita turned to Wes with a dazed expression, his eyes partially glazed over. Then- as though seeing Wes' worry for him and his determination to fight woke him up- ("almost like magic," Moonlight figured the humans would say) he put on a determined look himself, turned to Spoink, his fists set, and practically bellowed.

Moonlight jolted back in surprise. Then he grinned, and glanced back at Wes. _"Looks like he's ready for some __**action**__!"_

Bluno growled a little, though he had a content smirk on. He'd never seen _his_ corrupted pokemon do that. Surely that meant he was the better trainer? "Alright, Spoink, Confusion! Croconaw, Shadow Rush!"

The Croconaw broke out of the mound of rocks, and lunged at Moonlight, tackling him and then wincing in pain itself. The Spoink closed its small eyes, and Makuhita was suddenly thrown backwards, smacking the ground very close to Lily.

Wes narrowed his eyes. "Alright, this is ridiculous! Moonlight, Bite the Spoink! Makuhita… what was that attack? Shadow Rush? Alright, Shadow Rush the Croconaw!" he snapped, pointing at the opponents.

Makuhita shook himself off. He leapt forward, settling next to Moonlight, prepared to attack. Then, he punched one fist against the other, and assaulted the Croconaw, who tried desperately to dodge, even attempting to run and hide behind his trainer.

Wes chuckled as Makuhita chased Croconaw. The Croconaw gasped, out of breath, and collapsed, trying to breathe. "Get up!" snapped Bluno. Wes grinned. He pulled out one of the five pokemon that he had gotten from the Outskirt Stand, and threw it at the blue crocodile pokemon.

The poor Croconaw didn't even have the chance to escape, it was so tired. It gave up, and let the ball catch it.

Once the pokemon was caught, both Moonlight and Makuhita grinned over at Spoink. The pig jumped away from them, and started squealing. It tried to hide, even tried to attack Moonlight, but the attack didn't work.

"MOONLIGHT, BITE IT NOW!"

Spoink nearly fainted out of fear, until Moonlight's fangs dug into its skin. It gasped in pain, and the little pearl nestled between its ears fell, dropping to the ground. It was done.

Makuhita hopped up and down in joy. He glanced back at Wes, still unsure of whom he was and if he wanted to trust him. After all, humans had been cruel to him his whole life. Yet, trust blossomed in his chest when he felt something whiz by him, and saw the Umbreon dip his head and pick up the pokeball that held Croconaw, before speeding back to the man and throwing himself into his arms.

"Another one down, Wes! Good job!" Lily squealed.

Bluno grumbled, preparing to throw his pokeballs to the ground. But, he sighed and gave up, quickly cuing into his partners' channels to contact them.

Wes smiled a little in pride. He took a few steps toward Makuhita, who flinched. Sighing, he said, "Thanks for the help Makuhita. Return."

And Makuhita was pulled into his pokeball.

* * *

Wow, did that take a long time to write! Sorry! But, I hope you liked it! That's the important thing, right? Haha. Thanks for reading! Please review!

With love...

Ja ne! :-)


	6. Trainers vs Masters

_**Shadow Uproar**_

Special thanks to: _D.J. Scales: _Thank you. Thank you very much.

_Meta-Akira_: Of course I went for the Croconaw! Actually, I love them all, I was just following a guide so I could remember the pokemon that are used by these idiots.

_DecepticonDefenestrater_: Thank you... and the thing was, things that they were guessing at had nothing to do with the storyline of the game Pokemon Colosseum. So they couldn't have been following the plot line.

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon, Pokemon Colosseum, Wes, Lily, or anyone mentioned. It'd be fun, but I don't.

* * *

Lily furrowed her eyebrows. They were out in the middle of the desert, plowing it toward Pyrite. It was particularly dark out; so dark that Wes' headlights shone incredibly far ahead of them. The sun had set two hours ago, yet for some reason Wes didn't seem to notice. "Wes! WES!" she screamed.

The bike started to slow a little, and he glanced down at her. "Yes?"

"Well… it's late out, Wes. I'm sure that that man can wait for us. You look like you're going to fall asleep on your feet. Er… whatever. Shouldn't we set up camp?" she asked.

Wes' eyes closed, but then he quickly opened them seeing as they were still driving. Then, he braked rather suddenly. "Yes. I suppose we should. But I'm not sure about letting Croconaw out…" he started.

"Do you always let them out?" Lily suddenly asked. She jumped out of the sidecar as Wes slid off of his perch, releasing his two best friends, who went off to romp and roam.

"Think about it this way. A pokeball, though it creates a natural habitat of just that pokemon's type, is very limiting. For instance, the pokemon is all alone. The pokemon has no food whatsoever. There is an unseen wall that both Moonlight and Daylight have told me they've crashed into once or twice. Would you, Lily, want to live in a cage your whole life? This is probably the reason that several pokemon of trainers who don't let their pokemon out like I do mine love to battle, because they don't get out much." Wes replied. He leaned forward against his bike to watch Moonlight suddenly tackle Daylight, and the Sun pokemon forcefully retaliate by kicking at Moonlight's stomach.

Lily smiled. "So. Do we have camping supplies here or do you sleep out?" she asked.

"Normally? We sleep out. I think I have a small tent, though, if you want to use it. Hang on. Moonlight!"

Moonlight's head shot up, and he pranced over to his trainer cheerfully. _"You need my help to set up camp, dear Wes?"_ he asked.

"Kind of. Clap on for me, can you?"

Lily giggled when Moonlight rolled his eyes. He closed them, and centered all of his thoughts, until the yellow circles glowed brightly.

"Okay thanks Moonlight. You just sit there. Can you and Daylight do me a favor though? You know how I hate making you pokemon stay in your pokeballs, but I'm not sure about letting out Croconaw or Makuhita yet. If they were regular, I'd be okay with it… but they're not. Can you two watch them?"

Moonlight blinked, and hopped up once ("Hey!" Wes said) _"Yes, yes, yes we will Wes! We will make them our best friends until they can trust you!"_ he said.

Wes grinned a little. "Alright. I'm… letting them out now." He said. He held out the two corrupted pokemon's pokeballs, and they appear in a flash of light.

Croconaw looked like he was ready to scramble away, but Makuhita waited, sitting tight to see if there actually _was_ a reason to run away. Daylight took two rather threatening steps toward them.

Wes grinned as he pulled out the supplies. He set out a mat for himself, and an extra for Lily, and then some firewood and such for a fire. Then he set to work.

* * *

Once both Lily and Wes had fallen into a somewhat awkward sleep, Makuhita turned toward Moonlight and Daylight, who were watching them rather lazily. _"So… how long have you known this guy?"_ he asked.

Moonlight blinked and turned over onto his back. Daylight shrugged. _"You mean Wes? Years and years. I don't know exactly how long though. At least a decade, though it doesn't really seem like that long. Right Moonlight?"_ said Daylight. She brushed her paw over one of her gigantic ears.

Moonlight nodded. His black paws kicked at the air. _"At least. Didn't Wes say it was 14? Something like that anyway. Now shush, Wes and the girl are trying to sleep."_ He said. He felt like he was swimming upside down, both front and back paws kicking roughly at some unseen force. Which reminded him; he wanted to go swimming.

Croconaw glanced up at them. He was trying to sleep, to mentally escape from wherever he was and whoever was with him. _"Wes?"_ he asked. He didn't recognize that name. In fact, the only names he knew were Croconaw- his own- and Bluno- the name of his atrociously dressed Master.

Daylight glanced over at him, and smiled fondly. _"Yes, Wes. Our trainer. __**Your**__ trainer. Right over there."_ Her long tail flicked over to Wes, who was on his side, fast asleep.

Croconaw and Makuhita both glanced over to the man that Daylight was talking about. _"Trainer? I've __**never**__ had a trainer. Only Masters. What are they? And what is this one like?"_ Makuhita whispered. He sat up nervously, his eyes trailing over Wes' body.

Moonlight grinned, and turned over. He sat up and licked his paw to brush it across his ear. _"Trainers… trainers are even better than these Masters of yours. They don't want to make you slaves of them. Or, ours doesn't at least. They want you to be happy; in fact, they want to be your friend."_ He replied. He turned to Daylight.

"_Yes. And our trainer… well, he's been through a lot. He used to be a Master, I suppose, though he hated being one. Gonzap made him be, made him make us do things. He was only half-hearted about it, and we'd have done it before he asked anyway. But I think that being like that frightened him. He'd never admit it though, so don't go around saying that. All right? He used to live in the region of Johto; all three of us did actually. He was a runaway and we were being attacked and he saved us, and we've known him since then. Don't leave his side if we can help it."_ She giggled a little. _"That's what a good pokemon does, or something of the sort."_

Croconaw licked his jaws. _"A good… pokemon? Tell us about that. What are we supposed to do?"_ he asked. He'd never felt the need to be a "good pokemon" because none of his trainers- Masters- had felt the need to be good trainers. But something about the way that Wes had been when he'd battled him, about the way that he so gingerly handled his pokeball told him that this new man would be different from his Masters.

"_You listen to your trainer. Not like we're slaves or something. Do it because you want to."_ Said Moonlight.

_"Help them when they need it. Battle along side them with courage as great as the Entei's. Be an open ear when they ask for it." _Daylight explained further. Her delicate tail waved in the air from where she sat. She stood and wandered over to the fire to get a little warmer.

_"We understand that it might be a little difficult to do because you've switched trainers and you probably haven't been shown a lot of love from any of them, but trust me, Wes will show you more than enough if you can let him." _Moonlight said, standing to sit beside his sister.

Croconaw and Makuhita followed them.

_"Did you not feel the thrill, Makuhita, from working with him when we were battling that Bluno guy? Were you not excited to be thrown into the thrill of battle and have the responsibility of having to destroy the next person that would dare touch him? Did that not make you feel a little warmer, knowing that Wes had trusted you with **something**, though he'd only just met you?"_ Moonlight continued.

Makuhita licked his lips, and lifted his fist to his heart. _"I… it did feel warm when he threw me out, and even kept **me** in when a Psychic pokemon- good against my type- was thrown out by that man. And when I felt like I had a fever, he didn't tell me to get over it, did he? He asked if I was okay. He even offered to pull me out, right? So that I would feel better? I've never felt so warm before. Ever."_ He admitted.

Daylight smiled again. _"That's what having a trainer is like. But it's every day." _She said. She glanced between them. _"Might we ask you a question? After you've asked so many?" _she asked.

Croconaw bit his lip, unsure, but Makuhita nodded.

_"What was it like? Wherever you were, being corrupted like you are, or something. How'd they even catch you?"_ she whispered.

Croconaw sighed. _"I was an egg. They hatched me and raised me to be strong, and when I reached level 30- the level I'm at- they put me in something and I suffered the most horrible of things ever- they closed my heart. It hurt so badly, but when I was done I didn't feel anything. I was numb. You know, once you're like I am, you can't gain experience and level up. I've been at level 30 for probably three months now. And let me tell you, when you're battling and nothing is happening to you, that's not fun."_ He said. He groaned, and rubbed his belly a little bit, remembering all of the meal-less nights that he underwent because of failed training sessions.

Makuhita told them a similar story of a capture in a place that neither of them recognized- some cave in a place called Hoenn?

Daylight frowned. _"That's so sad. Well, you won't have to worry about that with my Wes."_ She purred.

Moonlight glanced up. _"It's getting late. I say we make like them,"_ he directed over to the two humans, _"and hit the hay. And don't run off, either of you. Wes asked us to watch you, but I'm getting tired."_

Croconaw glanced at Makuhita, and then out in the desert. Even if they did run off, where could they go? They'd probably die in the desert anyway. Makuhita sighed, and laid down a few feet from the siblings, who were curled up against each other. Croconaw copied him, and both found that, in the morning, they had gotten the best sleep in a long time.

* * *

That was going to be SO much longer than it was. Ick, I kind of wish that it was. But oh well. Next chapter, I suppose, we'll really get into the Shadow Pokemon stuff. Huuu... Anyway, thanks sooo much for reading! Could you please review? Please?

With Love...

Ja ne! :-)


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